Improvement in processes for separating woolen from cotton fiber



LOUIS R. BROADBENT AND CHARLES F. BBOA DBENT, OF BALTIMORE, MD.

' IMPROVEMENT lN PROCESSES FOR SEPARATING WOOLEN FROMCOTTONHBER.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent Iio. 173,762, dated February 2-2, 1876; application filed February 8, 1876.

1'0 all whom it may concern:

Beit known that we, Louis B. BROADBENT and CHARLES F. BROADBENT, of Baltimore, Maryland, have invented a new and improved process for separating woolen fiber from rags or other materials containing a mixture of wool and cotton, of which the following is a specification:

This invention relates to that class of .pro' cesses employed for separating woolen fiber from rags or other material composed of a mixture of wool and cotton, and consists in -subjecting such material to the action of boil ing'hydrochloric acid and water, in such proportions and under such circumstances as are hereinafter described.

In carrying out our invention, take the rags or other material to be operated upon, put them in cold waier, and allow them to remain for about the space of one hour before placing them in the acid-bath, to be prepared as follows: Take of hydrochloric acid, by bulk, one part, and of water, by bulk, five parts; mix them together and put the mixture over a fire to boil; when the acid-bath thus prepared is boiling, take the woolen and cotton material from the cold-water bath, place them in the boiling acid bath, which is to be kept boiling during the whole time, and allow them to acids, vegetable and mineral, will more readily dissolve and decompose vegetable than animal fibers; and we do not mean to claim such useot' hydrochloric acid, broadly.

We claim as our inventionwool from cotton fiber, which process consists in steeping the fabric in water, then boiling it in hydrochloric-acid solution of a specific gravtwenty-five minutes, and withdrawing, substanzially as described. r

LOUIS R. BROADBENT. CHAS. F. BROADBENT. Witnesses:

GEORGE B. STONE, HOBART HUTTON.

PATENT j OFFICE.

ical fact that hydrochloric and many other- The within-described process of separating V ity of from 1.015 to 1.19 for from three to. 

